A pair of Nebraska softball players were honored for their outstanding work in the classroom, as junior Mattie Fowler and former Husker Megan Southworth were named National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-America Scholar Athletes for the 2012-13 academic year.

To be eligible for the award, both Fowler and Southworth posted a 3.5 GPA or better in both the fall 2012 and spring 2013 semesters. Southworth, who earned her degree in speech language pathology last May, earned numerous academic honors in her career. She was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar in both 2012 and 2013. Southworth was also a three-time academic all-conference honoree, an eight-time honor roll member and the 2012-13 Julie Geis Memorial Scholarship recipient.

Fowler, a native of Tucson, Ariz., has impressed in the classroom through her first two years in the program. A team co-captain in 2013 when Nebraska advanced to the Women's College World Series, Fowler is a four-time Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll member. She was a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar in 2012-13, when she also earned academic All-Big Ten honors. Fowler also received a Nebraska HERO leadership award last spring.